Brent Arancio Memorial Fund

Brent was a Christian, a loving and devoted husband, father, friend and veteran of the United States Army and Washington State National Guard.
 
He spent his whole life serving others - survived multiple deployments to multiple war zones - only to have his life taken by a career criminal during a robbery. He leaves behind a wife and three children who are in desperate need of help to recover from this tragedy.  

Brent and Tammi have 3 wonderful children.  Ages 21, 10 and 6


ABOUT THE CRIME: 

Brent was working as a motel clerk in Sea-Tac, Washington. On Friday, June 15, 2018, a man entered the motel and shot Brent before stealing $150.

More about this crime and the suspect can be found below in an article by Seattle Times.  There are plenty of news articles which detail the crime, some that have photos of the suspect as well as his criminal history.
Few if any tell you about Brent, a military veteran and victim of this horrible tragedy.  

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/charges-detail-fatal-shooting-robbery-of-seatac-motel-clerk/ 

https://www.daytondailynews.com/news/local/suspect-seattle-area-homicide-arrested-raid-dayton-home/7u5pzqWP461MuHXdrPnnpN/ 


BRENT & HIS SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRY:

Born in South Korea as Bon Chu Choi, Brent moved to the U.S. and became a U.S. Citizen at the age of 5 years old.

He met his wife to be at Northwest Rankin High School in 1994 in MS, where he was involved with JROTC, volunteered with Reservoir Volunteer Fire Department and was a lifeguard at the Courthouse. After high school, he went to junior college and then started seminary school. 

In 2000,  Brent enlisted for active duty and served in the Army from 2000-2015.  His service included multiple deployments to war zones and extended periods away from his wife and children.   He willing reenlisted despite knowing he would be deployed again and again.

His last post was in Washington State.  Honorably discharged from the Army in May 2015, Brent continued serving in the Washington National Guard until mid-May 2018. 

During those 3 years, he volunteered not once but twice to work the wildfires there, most recently in 2017.

 Brent never gave up on his faith and never stopped trying his best to provide for his family.  He took three city buses, which took a total of 3 hours with transfers, to get to the Sea-Tac motel where he lost his life.  At the time of his death, Brent was a little over a week away from re-enlisting in the National Guard. 

Which also meant that he knew he would get deployed again.  He aspired to be a chaplain and to work in law enforcement. His life has always been about service. 

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

Brent and his wife, Tammi, met in 1994 and were married in August 2006. They have a daughter and two young sons. Funds received will cover Brent’s final expenses and will help sustain his family in the hard times ahead.

Brent was the sole provider for Tammi and the children. The financial help will allow her to focus on the children, grieving and healing, rather than the financial burden this tragedy has brought upon them. They don’t have in-state family.

Due to the manner and timing of Brent’s death, the family does not qualify to be a Gold Star family and there is not a retirement pension, etc.

Will you honor Brent's service to our country by helping his wife and children? There are three ways you can help:

1.  Help financially by making a donation of ANY amount through this gofundme campaign, established with his wife’s permission. Funds will go directly to her account. 

2.  Share this story as broadly as possible.

3.  Pray for his wife and children. Although she knows Brent would encourage her to trust God’s plan, she’ll have a lifetime of “what if’s,” always wondering if there is something she could’ve done to save the love of her life and father of her children.

Prayers are needed for peace, comfort and understanding. Tammi is thankful for the support and prayers from everyone.